Gloria Allred: Women in Petraeus Scandal Are Victims of 'Very Unfair' Media 'Double Standard'

November 16th, 2012 3:08 PM

Here's something you don't see every day: a prominent liberal accusing the mainstream media of having a "double standard" and treating people in a "very unfair" manner.

But that's exactly what happened on Wednesday, when feminist lawyer Gloria Allred told Caroline May -- a political reporter with the Daily Caller website -- that the women in the sex scandal surrounding the resignation of former CIA Director David Petraeus "are being depicted in a negative and stereotypical manner."

Known for representing women in high-profile legal cases, Allred stated in an email that Paula Broadwell, Petraeus' former mistress, and "whistle-blower" Jill Kelley, whose "flirtatious" communications with Marine General John Allen are also being investigated, are victims of media coverage "which appears to be very unfair to all of them."

I hope that one day, all of the women will be able to speak and give a fuller and more positive statement about who they really are and what their role was in this matter.

Allred would "neither confirm nor deny" that she is representing anyone involved in the national scandal.

Nevertheless, it's not surprising that Allred would comment on the case, especially since she has defended several women against powerful men, including Tiger Woods, former New York Democratic Rep. Anthony Weiner and comedian Eddie Murphy.

Among those responding to Allred's remarks on the scandal was a poster at the beforeitsnews.com website, who said:

It was only a matter of days before we would hear from LA's biggest ambulance chaser, Gloria Allred, attorney to women who don't need attorneys, as she weighs in on the negative attention being heaped on Paula Broadwell ad Jill Kelley over the Petraeus scandal.

"Fill this under 'Who Cares?'" the blogger added.

Meanwhile, Thomas J. Ralph commented on the Twitter website regarding the attorney's statement: "So Allred stands up for bimbos like Broadwell and Kelly, but the real victim, Mrs. Petraeus, gets no mention at all."

An FBI probe into harassing emails sent to Kelley revealed Petraeus' afair with Broadwell, his biographer, who reportedly viewed Kelley as a romantic threat. Petraeus resigned his post on Friday as director of the CIA, citing the affair as his reason for stepping down.

As NewsBusters previously reported, Allred isn't shy about sharing her opinions with the public on a wide variety of topics.

A year ago, she represented Sharon Blalek, who accused then-GOP presidential candidate Herman Cain of sexual harassment while he was president of the National Restaurant Association.

Then in March, she called for conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh to be prosecuted after he referred to Georgetown University law student and feminist activist Sandra Fluke as a "slut" and a "prostitute."

A month later, Allred defended transgendered Miss Universe contestant Jenna Talackova. During an appearance on The View, Barbara Walters referred to Allred as "the great women's rights lawyer."

One of the things I enjoy is watching two liberals clash since they are both always 100 percent correct in their beliefs, even though they disagree. Still, I doubt that Allred's complaints are serious enough to get her banned from the "very unfair" media the next time she defends someone who's a devout liberal.